Mamas and Papas

North Saanich,British Columbia, Canada

Wall Art

Canvas Print

Photographic Print

Art Print

Framed Print

Metal Print

Stationery

Greeting Card

Artist's Description

Well, I’m assuming that the ones on the nests are the Mamas and the ones who are mostly preening are the Papas! Anyone more familiar with cormorants might want to correct me. Hundreds of pairs of these seabirds nest on the sheer granite cliffs of Mandarte Island, a mostly barren rock in the sea a few miles off the south east coast of Vancouver Island, Canada.It’s amazing to see how they manage to build and keep a nest in place on the bare rocks. A couple of pictures of the island are on this site if you want to see what it looks like. See “A Rock in the Ocean” and “Our Nest,Our Rock,Our Home”.It’s a small part of the Gulf Island which lie in the waters off Sidney, the closest town on the mainland of Vancouver Island.Since the island rises very steeply from the waters of Haro Strait, it’s easy to drift up close in my boat and get close to them. They’re actually quite tolerant as long as you stay quiet and just drift in slowly and let them get used to you.

Thanks Mike. I guess they are pretty wide-ranging birds, like gulls, and if they are like gulls I can see how they could start to become a concern. With me, gulls were just a way of life in Cape Breton :)